An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Blogs, Vlogs and Social Media!

  • Published
  • By Col. Gary Goldstone
  • 375th Air Mobility Wing Commander
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  Over the years the Air Force has utilized numerous modes of media to communicate its messages. As technology advanced, so too have the methods for communicating. Just look back a "few" years ago to the start of World War II. Scott Field opened a school for training radio operators. Today, Scott Air Force Base develops network applications and provides communications capabilities and support around the world.

Senior leaders continue to search for the best ways to communicate with Airmen and with the general public. After several years of working through policy issues and ensuring the protection of the networks, the Air Force will now allow access to popular social media sites via government computers. Opening the networks will make it possible for all Airmen to engage more often through these outlets.

This is a positive step to encourage communication within the chain of command, get people talking about issues, and share experiences of Air Force life. One of the goals is to encourage the use of social media in an official capacity to communicate and counter-blog (aka, correct the record of media reports or inaccurate information.)

You may already be familiar with "BlueTube," (www.YouTube.com/AFBlueTube) the Air Force's channel on YouTube, or "Air Force Live," (http://airforcelive.dodlive.mil) a central location for bloggers to share their Air Force experiences in a less formal setting. These two sites have been open to the military networks for some time but often the blogs that "Air Force Live" lists or refers to are not open on the .mil domain. That can be disappointing when researching or following a story completely, as elements of a good blog will annotate the source of its information.

Video blogging, or vlogs, have become popular as well. A very good recent example of a vlog has come from two Air Force personnel through a project called "30 Days Through Afghanistan" (http://30days.isaf.nato.int/). Two NCOs traveled throughout Afghanistan to document the work the military is doing, to learn about the Afghan people, and help readers understand the complex nature of the missions and counter-insurgency efforts. Through video reports, photos, blogs and reader feedback, there began an intimate conversation of their journey, observations, and assessment of the mission and people they met along the way. I've not seen any type of "official" reporting like this before and congratulate the two on an outstanding product that they, and fellow Air Force members can be proud of creating and sharing.

Another successful example of using social media was the U.S. Southern Command's creation of the JTF-Haiti Facebook page to showcase our military efforts, and to give people a central place to view information, ask questions or comment on mission progress. I find these sites to be a rich resource of information about what's going on from those with first-hand experience. I also like these sites because they provide human interest stories that aren't always publicized in the mainstream media.

There will always be discussion and debate over concerns about the use of social media vs. mission accomplishment or network issues. And that's a good thing. We should be deliberate, and careful in our use of this technology and these venues. In this week's paper there is a reminder of the do's and don'ts of engaging in the social media framework, such as being aware of operational security and ensuring we're representing the Air Force in a professional manner. Other guidelines such as staying in our lane of expertise and not revealing too much personal information are all good reminders.

I encourage everyone to contribute to the discussion and share experiences. You'll see a few updates this week on our Scott AFB Blog, (www.scottafbblog.blogspot.com/) such as our recent trip to Washington D.C. and "How to Survive a Half Marathon," so I encourage you to check out these spots and submit your own stories for us to enjoy! Air Power!